Russian forces should withdraw from Donbas, - Alliance’s Secretary General

Jens Stoltenberg, the Secretary General of NATO, met with Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko in Brussels, to re-assure him of the firm political support of the Alliance for this country. At the same time, Stoltenberg condemned Russia-s actions in Donbas and failure to comply with Minsk agreements.

‘We support Ukraine by calling on Russia to make sure that the Minsk agreements are fully implemented. And Russia has a great responsibility because Russia continues to support the separatists in Donbas. They [Russia] continue to be present and therefore they have a special responsibility to make sure that the Minsk agreements are fully implemented. I can assure you that we will continue to call on Russia to seek peaceful negotiated solution based on the Minsk agreements and we will continue to support Ukraine and support the Minsk agreement’, Stoltenberg said.

According to Stoltenberg, practical assistance is provided through trust funds; the Allies are also encouraged to provide support on a bilateral basis, and a comprehensive package of assistance for Ukraine was adopted at the NATO summit in Warsaw in July this year.